DA20 Now Available With Aspen Avionics PFD

It's a touch of class -- and, most importantly, glass -- for a venerable trainer. Diamond Aircraft and Aspen Avionics announced Thursday at AOPA Expo 2008 a factory-equipped glass cockpit solution for the DA20 Eclipse.

With an option price of only $7,995 for the Aspen EFD1000 Pilot Primary Flight Display (PFD), Diamond says the DA20 now offers the industry's lowest purchase price for a certified glass cockpit-equipped aircraft.

"Combining low acquisition cost with a 5 gph fuel burn, low maintenance costs and low insurance rates, makes the glass DA20 the most economical means to integrate Technologically Advanced Aircraft training into any flight training program," said Peter Maurer, President of Diamond Aircraft. "The Garmin G1000 is brilliant, but to get into one requires the purchase of a 4-seater with higher acquisition and operating costs. Whereas this has been a barrier to some operators, the Aspen-equipped DA20 makes glass cockpit training a possibility for every flight school."

"We are very excited that Diamond has chosen the Aspen Evolution Flight Display system for the DA20," says John Uczekaj, President and CEO of Aspen Avionics. "Diamond has such a strong reputation as an innovative, market-leading company, and the DA20 is a great application for our avionics. This cockpit will add significant utility to DA20 operators ­ making it possible to do TAA training in a certified, sub-$200,000 aircraft."

New DA20 aircraft equipped with the Aspen PFD will be able to support retrofit of the Aspen EFD1000 Multi-Function Display (MFD) upon its certification, expected in mid-2009. As an added incentive, EFD1000-equipped DA20s will come pre-equipped with much of the hardware necessary for the retrofit.

FMI: www.diamondaircraft.com, www.aspenavionics.com